FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

  1. How can a YMCA start a YMCA READS! Program?

A: There are several steps:

    1. Obtain an application packet from Angela Hogan, YMCA READS! Grantwriter (ahogan@sarasota-ymca.org) or from Madeleine Hennings, YMCA READS! Statewide Coordinator (mhennings@sarasota-ymca.org), and become familiar with the grant requirements.
    2. Find a participating school to form a partnership with. Schools with high rates of students on the Free or Reduced Lunch Program and low school grades are given priority.
    3. Fill out and turn the application packet, which will be reviewed in June by the Florida Alliance of YMCAs.
    4. The Florida Alliance then applies for a block grant from the State Department of Education, usually in August. If the grant is obtained, the funding is divided between the participating YMCAs.
  1. Is the YMCA READS! Program on the list of Supplemental Educational Services (SES) Providers that school districts contract with to provide tutoring for students with No Child Left Behind (Title I) Funding?

A: No, it is not. The YMCA READS! Program is funded through the legislature to promote mentoring in Florida. Approximately 200,000 mentors per year volunteer their services to help children succeed in schools. These mentoring programs are coordinated by the Florida Mentoring Partnership (www.FLAMentoring.org), which is part of the Volunteer Florida Foundation (www.volunteerfloridafoundation.org).

  1. Is this tutoring program free to schools, parents and YMCA organizations?

A: YMCA organizations must contribute matching funds, such as scholarships for participating students, snacks, accessibility to sports and after-school programs, and sometimes transportation.
YMCA READS! is free to participating schools and to parents or guardians.

  1. What can I do as a parent to enroll my child in this program?

A: Your child has to attend a school that participates in the YMCA READS! Program. Referrals are made by the child’s teacher or reading specialist. If your child attends a school offering YMCA READS! services, you can ask your child’s teacher if the program would be appropriate for him/her. Students are selected based on their performance in reading in the classroom and on standardized tests, and socio-economic factors.

  1. I am interested in volunteering for this program. What should I do?

A: Click on the name of the site coordinator of the YMCA closet to you. You will get the contact information for the program’s site coordinator. You will be asked to attend a training and go through a background check to meet the requirements of the Jessica Lunsford Act (Section 1012.465, Florida Statutes) and the participating school district and YMCA. Once this is done, you will be working with the site coordinator to receive on-going support, materials and lesson plans.

  1. I cannot volunteer my time. Can I do anything for the YMCA READS! Program?

A: Yes! Site coordinators need books to send home for children; art supplies; small incentives to keep students motivated; help in fundraising and translating materials for parents who do not speak English. Contact your local site coordinator by clicking on their name in the contact list.

  1. What kind of support does the YMCA READS! Program get from community organizations?

A: Local programs have been helped by businesses or foundations in many different ways: some release their employees an hour a week to mentor; some give mini-grants or books; free food for Parent Literacy Nights; free passes to theatres, etc..

  1. Will tutoring in mathematics and other academic areas be available to students?

A: At this point, the focus is on the development of literacy skills in young children to prevent school failure.

  1. Once children are selected to participate in this program, how long can they receive services?

A: They continue to receive services until they enter fourth grade, or until their teachers know they no longer need them. However, a child can be dismissed from the program if behavior or attendance are problematic. This only occurs after other interventions have been tried.

  1. How do you know that the YMCA READS! Program really helps children?

A: Our program is accountable to the State Department of Education. Coordinators enter attendance and test data on a secure website monitored by the Volunteer Florida Foundation. An external evaluator comes to visit some of the YMCA READS! Programs, and writes a report. Test scores of students in the YMCA READS! Program are analyzed and compared to students’ scores who did not get that intervention. Teachers, reading specialists, principals, parents and mentors are surveyed to voice their opinion about the program. Children’s progress is monitored carefully within the program as well, and one level of the curriculum must be mastered before the child can move to the next level. Overwhelmingly, the data gathered and analyzed show that children’s reading skills and self-confidence are improving through this mentoring program.

  1. Does my child have to be enrolled in the YMCA After-School Program to participate in the YMCA READS! Program?

A: No. You can enroll your child in the YMCA READS! Program only, which is free. You can also request to enroll your child in the YMCA After-School Program in addition to READS! if you wish and if space is available. It is a fee-based program, but scholarships are available for families who qualify for them.